Choosing what to believe is one of the most important things one can do in life and one in which, for the most part, an individual is ill prepared to do. While a few things are plain and simple facts, most are not so plain or simple and you must rely on the interpretation of other people.
History. How many times has the relating of it (history books) changed on you? What was the USA constitution based on? Did the founding fathers believe in God? Was Abraham Lincoln fighting to abolish slavery or to save the Union? Did or did not the United States know that the Japanese were about to attack Pearl Harbor? Did the atomic bombs need to be dropped at Hiroshima and Nagasaki in order to save lives in WWII or had the Japanese already begun the surrender process and the bombs were merely to show Russia what was what? Did Oswald act alone? Why did the twin towers fall in such an odd way? Where are the weapons of mass destruction? How much do the the top brass know about the way enemies are tortured?
Truthfulness starts in the home with the stories we tell our children. How can a child learn truth when we are inconsistent with it ourselves? Is there a Santa Claus or isn't there? Is there not a better way to explain this lively traditional elf? Can't a parent truthfully explain a tradition of believing in generous souls who gave secret gifts for hard working children, who gave money for teeth, who gave hidden eggs filled with treats? Now, there are binkey faeries who take bottles and binkies and deliver them to children who need them!
What's the problem believing in "magic"? If you truly believe in faeries and elves fine and dandy but if you are going to tell your child you were lying to them to give them a taste of magic that you never believed actually existed in the first place, you might want to reconsider. For those who truly believe in God they should take heed that never before in the history of the world have there been more atheists (non believers in any diety), with more than 70% of them coming from religious upbringings. Can it be directly connected to inconsistent truthfulness? You judge, isn't the child going to logically wonder when is the story of Santa and the story of God going to both be disavowed by the parent, if one of them is? When parents fail to be consistent in their truthfulness we lose trust of our first teachers.
When schools teach what to learn instead of how to learn we don't know how to find the truth if parents do not advocate for their children's education. When coaches give spots on the team based on who's name is on the school board or in the country club we never learn the truth about who it is wise to follow until sports are no longer seen as leadership training grounds. When our news providing media is bought and paid for by special interest groups we allow truth to be buried if we do not speak out and refuse to buy it. When the two party system is in a tie for corruption and people at the polls are looking for the lessor of two evils rather than the best person for the job truth has a way of being something that is considered an unattainable goal to a cynical society.
Truth? Maybe we can handle it, but do we deserve it? As long as we have breath in our body we deserve to be told the truth. As long as this country endures it must tell us the truth. A liar will continue to lie until someone has the courage to call out, "The Emperor is not wearing any clothes!" Be that person!
Truth? We can all handle it!
History. How many times has the relating of it (history books) changed on you? What was the USA constitution based on? Did the founding fathers believe in God? Was Abraham Lincoln fighting to abolish slavery or to save the Union? Did or did not the United States know that the Japanese were about to attack Pearl Harbor? Did the atomic bombs need to be dropped at Hiroshima and Nagasaki in order to save lives in WWII or had the Japanese already begun the surrender process and the bombs were merely to show Russia what was what? Did Oswald act alone? Why did the twin towers fall in such an odd way? Where are the weapons of mass destruction? How much do the the top brass know about the way enemies are tortured?
Truthfulness starts in the home with the stories we tell our children. How can a child learn truth when we are inconsistent with it ourselves? Is there a Santa Claus or isn't there? Is there not a better way to explain this lively traditional elf? Can't a parent truthfully explain a tradition of believing in generous souls who gave secret gifts for hard working children, who gave money for teeth, who gave hidden eggs filled with treats? Now, there are binkey faeries who take bottles and binkies and deliver them to children who need them!
What's the problem believing in "magic"? If you truly believe in faeries and elves fine and dandy but if you are going to tell your child you were lying to them to give them a taste of magic that you never believed actually existed in the first place, you might want to reconsider. For those who truly believe in God they should take heed that never before in the history of the world have there been more atheists (non believers in any diety), with more than 70% of them coming from religious upbringings. Can it be directly connected to inconsistent truthfulness? You judge, isn't the child going to logically wonder when is the story of Santa and the story of God going to both be disavowed by the parent, if one of them is? When parents fail to be consistent in their truthfulness we lose trust of our first teachers.
When schools teach what to learn instead of how to learn we don't know how to find the truth if parents do not advocate for their children's education. When coaches give spots on the team based on who's name is on the school board or in the country club we never learn the truth about who it is wise to follow until sports are no longer seen as leadership training grounds. When our news providing media is bought and paid for by special interest groups we allow truth to be buried if we do not speak out and refuse to buy it. When the two party system is in a tie for corruption and people at the polls are looking for the lessor of two evils rather than the best person for the job truth has a way of being something that is considered an unattainable goal to a cynical society.
Truth? Maybe we can handle it, but do we deserve it? As long as we have breath in our body we deserve to be told the truth. As long as this country endures it must tell us the truth. A liar will continue to lie until someone has the courage to call out, "The Emperor is not wearing any clothes!" Be that person!
Truth? We can all handle it!
